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Got That Something! How the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" Changed Everything
THE BEHIND-THE-SCENES STORY OF THE HIT SONG THAT TOOK AMERICA BY STORM.
By the fall of 1963, the Beatles were cruising at the top of the British pop charts, girls were screaming—and often literally fainting—and huge crowds were swarming airports and any other place the mop-topped lads from Liverpool were expected to turn up. The English press had already coined a term for this madness: Beatlemania.
But while their conquest of Britain was no longer in question, the band had yet to captivate America. Then came “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” a burst of bubbly, cheerful energy with an infectious tune and enough original twists and suggestive wordplay to catch even a skeptic’s ear. Suddenly John, Paul, George and Ringo had the country in a swoon and the rock ’n’ roll world was a very different place. Fifty years later, the Beatles remain the most beloved band of all time.
In “Got That Something!” Allan Kozinn, a “New York Times” music critic and reporter and noted authority on the Beatles, chronicles the birth of this iconic Lennon-McCartney song, painting a vivid picture of the legendary songwriting duo at work, and the emergence of this distinctively British-sounding tune that—contrary to the assumptions of American record labels—became beloved in the United States, paving the way for the invasion to come.
In this definitive, vividly detailed portrait of a song and its legacy, Kozinn, who has taught at the Juilliard School and New York University, geeks out over chord progressions, double-tracked vocals, and the two simple words “You” and “I,” which together would carry the group to the top of the charts over and over. His fascination is contagious, bringing to life a seminal moment in rock history, when this “two-and-a-half-minute miracle” forged new possibilities for pop music in the sixties and beyond. Modern-day Beatlemaniacs will also appreciate the comprehensive discography/filmography/bibliography related to the song. If you thought you knew everything about the Fab Four, this book will change your mind.
By the fall of 1963, the Beatles were cruising at the top of the British pop charts, girls were screaming—and often literally fainting—and huge crowds were swarming airports and any other place the mop-topped lads from Liverpool were expected to turn up. The English press had already coined a term for this madness: Beatlemania.
But while their conquest of Britain was no longer in question, the band had yet to captivate America. Then came “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” a burst of bubbly, cheerful energy with an infectious tune and enough original twists and suggestive wordplay to catch even a skeptic’s ear. Suddenly John, Paul, George and Ringo had the country in a swoon and the rock ’n’ roll world was a very different place. Fifty years later, the Beatles remain the most beloved band of all time.
In “Got That Something!” Allan Kozinn, a “New York Times” music critic and reporter and noted authority on the Beatles, chronicles the birth of this iconic Lennon-McCartney song, painting a vivid picture of the legendary songwriting duo at work, and the emergence of this distinctively British-sounding tune that—contrary to the assumptions of American record labels—became beloved in the United States, paving the way for the invasion to come.
In this definitive, vividly detailed portrait of a song and its legacy, Kozinn, who has taught at the Juilliard School and New York University, geeks out over chord progressions, double-tracked vocals, and the two simple words “You” and “I,” which together would carry the group to the top of the charts over and over. His fascination is contagious, bringing to life a seminal moment in rock history, when this “two-and-a-half-minute miracle” forged new possibilities for pop music in the sixties and beyond. Modern-day Beatlemaniacs will also appreciate the comprehensive discography/filmography/bibliography related to the song. If you thought you knew everything about the Fab Four, this book will change your mind.
- GenresMusicNonfiction
87 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 10, 2013
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45 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 6, 2017
Released for the 50th anniversary of the Fabs arrival in the US, this fascinating Kindle Single book looks at the event by focusing on the song which broke them in America, "I want to hold your hand." The author is a music critic and a reporter for the New York Times, who has written about the band before and, in this outing, he really gives a lot of depth and thought into what made the Beatles different. When so many other UK artists had failed to make it in the US market, what was it about the Beatles, and that song, which finally broke open the doors and allowed the British Invasion to begin?
Allan Kozinn states that "I want to hold your hand" exploded onto the American pop charts just after New Year's Day 1964. As with so much of the band's history, it wasn't an easy journey. If London has resisted this upstart, provincial, Liverpool band, then Capitol Records (the American arm of EMI) absolutely refused to promote them in the States. Americans were not interested in British music and that was that. However, the Beatles grabbed the attention of the media, as stories of Beatlemania began to leak into the press and news. This new phenomena could not be ignored and, when a young girl called her local radio station asking to hear something by this band, the disc jockey imported "I want to hold your hand" to play. He didn't even realise that several Beatles singles, released by smaller labels, languished, un-played and ignored, in the radio stations archives.
Astonishingly, Capitol Records even tried to stop him playing it (an unusual move by a record company who should have been promoting their artist, which shows how resistant they were to an English group having any success); but the record took off and, before it was even released in the US, it was everywhere. It made number one in the charts while the Beatles were in Paris and paved the way for Beatlemania to cross the Ocean in February, 1964.
This ebook looks at how the song was written and recorded and there is a great deal about the input of George Martin in their recording career. It also looks at how quickly the song, which made them a success in the States, was dropped from their live act as the Beatles, always looking forward, rather than backward, moved on. There are lots of books about the Beatles first success in the States, but this short and intriguing read should not be ignored, as it is of great interest to fans.
Allan Kozinn states that "I want to hold your hand" exploded onto the American pop charts just after New Year's Day 1964. As with so much of the band's history, it wasn't an easy journey. If London has resisted this upstart, provincial, Liverpool band, then Capitol Records (the American arm of EMI) absolutely refused to promote them in the States. Americans were not interested in British music and that was that. However, the Beatles grabbed the attention of the media, as stories of Beatlemania began to leak into the press and news. This new phenomena could not be ignored and, when a young girl called her local radio station asking to hear something by this band, the disc jockey imported "I want to hold your hand" to play. He didn't even realise that several Beatles singles, released by smaller labels, languished, un-played and ignored, in the radio stations archives.
Astonishingly, Capitol Records even tried to stop him playing it (an unusual move by a record company who should have been promoting their artist, which shows how resistant they were to an English group having any success); but the record took off and, before it was even released in the US, it was everywhere. It made number one in the charts while the Beatles were in Paris and paved the way for Beatlemania to cross the Ocean in February, 1964.
This ebook looks at how the song was written and recorded and there is a great deal about the input of George Martin in their recording career. It also looks at how quickly the song, which made them a success in the States, was dropped from their live act as the Beatles, always looking forward, rather than backward, moved on. There are lots of books about the Beatles first success in the States, but this short and intriguing read should not be ignored, as it is of great interest to fans.
August 16, 2019
Allan Kozinn is a music critic who covered both Classical music and The Beatles for The New York Times, and he tells the story of how one song changed everything. By the end of 1963 The Beatles were huge in Britain and much of Europe, but couldn't buy a radio play in the U.S. EMI's US label, Capitol, was offered their recordings and passed on them. songs like She Loves You were on otherwise obscure labels (Swan Records in this case), and previously their recordings were on Vee-Jay records until the contract was terminated because Vee-Jay failed to pay the royalties that were due. Capitol was finally persuaded to release "I Want To Hold Your Hand", and the story of that is also fascinating. By February of 1964 The Beatles were leading the British Invasion and nothing would be the same.
If you are a fan of The Beatles you should get this. It is a fun read, and Kozinn is a good writer and very knowledgeable on the topic.
If you are a fan of The Beatles you should get this. It is a fun read, and Kozinn is a good writer and very knowledgeable on the topic.
November 23, 2013
Did you know that I Want to Hold Your Hand is 50 years old?
It was released in the U.K. on November 29, 1963, and in the U.S. on December 26, 1963. It stayed at number one for five weeks and remained in the U.K. top fifty for twenty-one weeks in total. It was also the group's first American number one, entering the Billboard Hot 100 chart on January 18, 1964, at number forty-five and starting the British invasion of the American music industry. By February 1, it held the number one spot for seven weeks before being replaced by "She Loves You" and remained in the U.S. charts for a total of fifteen weeks. "I Want to Hold Your Hand" became the Beatles' best-selling single worldwide.
Interestingly enough, this song was also recorded in 1968 by The Moving Sidewalks, an American psychedelic blues-rock band most notable for giving future ZZ Top guitarist, Billy Gibbons, his start in the music business.
This book provides the history of the song (plus the details about cord progressions, etc.) in addition to providing information leading up to its release. You'll find it interesting if you are a fan of the Beatles or a music-lover of that period.
Blog review post: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2013/11...
It was released in the U.K. on November 29, 1963, and in the U.S. on December 26, 1963. It stayed at number one for five weeks and remained in the U.K. top fifty for twenty-one weeks in total. It was also the group's first American number one, entering the Billboard Hot 100 chart on January 18, 1964, at number forty-five and starting the British invasion of the American music industry. By February 1, it held the number one spot for seven weeks before being replaced by "She Loves You" and remained in the U.S. charts for a total of fifteen weeks. "I Want to Hold Your Hand" became the Beatles' best-selling single worldwide.
Interestingly enough, this song was also recorded in 1968 by The Moving Sidewalks, an American psychedelic blues-rock band most notable for giving future ZZ Top guitarist, Billy Gibbons, his start in the music business.
This book provides the history of the song (plus the details about cord progressions, etc.) in addition to providing information leading up to its release. You'll find it interesting if you are a fan of the Beatles or a music-lover of that period.
Blog review post: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2013/11...
December 23, 2013
A short but highly entertaining analysis of the early Beatles' hit "I Want to Hold Your Hand", just in time for the 50th anniversary of the song's U.S. release! This book looks at both the cultural phenomenon of early Beatlemania, as well as offering a more technical (and very interesting) analysis of the musical elements of the song. Highly recommended for fans of music of any genre!
March 13, 2023
Some useful information. Fun read
Short book. In fact more like a short story. Leaves you short in the end. Allot about I Want To Hold Your Hand Song references. That song which brought us here in the States "The Beatles" was never really played again live after the fame took over . To ad the effect of hearing it for first time was never hit upon by The Beatles catalog ever again ! Yes they had many other songs that we loved , but that first rush of newness, the what it had a new sound, the
Wow to Earworm just never hit us again the same way !
Short book. In fact more like a short story. Leaves you short in the end. Allot about I Want To Hold Your Hand Song references. That song which brought us here in the States "The Beatles" was never really played again live after the fame took over . To ad the effect of hearing it for first time was never hit upon by The Beatles catalog ever again ! Yes they had many other songs that we loved , but that first rush of newness, the what it had a new sound, the
Wow to Earworm just never hit us again the same way !
March 29, 2014
"Got That Something!" focuses rather heavily on specific musical changes that makes the song noteworthy. In other words, much of the book is musically technical & if you don't know guitar chords (I don't) then the song's uniqueness will be lost. The author doesn't talk about the music that influenced the Beatles at the time. The book does provide a bunch of historical angles - who else recorded the song, the prior singles (& their production), & the record companies (Capitol) early rejections of 2 great Beatle songs (Please Please Me, She Loves You) & then its promotional embrace of "I Want to Hold Your Hand." But, Kozinn's biggest blunder is to say that the song was a hit because it was unlike anything on the radio at the time, an absurd claim. I was there. The song was reminiscent of the Everly Brothers, Del Shannon, Bobby Rydell, the Girl Groups, & the Four Seasons. It was more like a Meta-Synthesis of what was on the radio, Beatles-unique in some respects but familiar in others.
January 2, 2014
In the Kindle single Got That Something! How the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" Changed Everything Allan Kozinn gives an extremely detailed history of the Beatles song "I Want to Hold Your Hand". I love the Beatles and have read history on some of their songs, but this was more than I personally wanted to know. It detailed not only the history of the writing of the song but the musical theory and different changes the song went through over time. I am sure a musical theorist would enjoy the book, but after a while it bored me.
December 5, 2013
Fantastic book, too short though, thoroughly recommend it
September 3, 2016
Okay, saying that it "changed everything" is a stretch, but if you want a brief but detailed account of the beginning of the Beatles' recording history, this is it.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews